Nature: Four steps to precision public health
Scott F. Dowell, deputy director for surveillance and epidemiology; David Blazes, senior program officer for surveillance and epidemiology; and Susan Desmond-Hellmann, chief executive, all at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation

“…The use of data to guide interventions that benefit populations more efficiently is a strategy we call precision public health. It requires robust primary surveillance data, rapid application of sophisticated analytics to track the geographical distribution of disease, and the capacity to act on such information. The availability and use of precise data is becoming the norm in wealthy countries. But large swathes of the developing world are not reaping its advantages. … Four concrete steps are necessary for precision public health to become regularly available in the developing world. Register births and deaths. … Track disease. … Incorporate laboratory analyses. … Train more people. … Wherever they live — in a village, city, or country, in the global south or north — people have the right to public health decisions that are based on the best data and science possible, that minimize risk and cost, and maximize health in their communities” (12/5).